All ages comics and manga for 8/24/11

This week sports a fairly small list with some big adventures! Boom Studios debuts a new superhero, Wordgirl, in a new trade, while Marvel continues its Disney-Pixar comics featuring the Incredibles this time. Top Shelf has two new titles debuting this week. Okie Dokie Donuts and Pirate Penguin vs Ninja Chicken are both titles that look like a lot of fun for the whole family. Definitely check these out as well as this week’s picks!

Knuckles The Echidna Archives Volume 1 – Sonic the Hedgehog’s frienemy gets his own archive. Knuckles has been around since the video game Sonic the Hedgehog 3 and proved popular enough to get his own mini-series that are collected in this title: Sonic’s Friendly Nemesis: Knuckles #1-3 and Knuckles the Echidna #1-3. In this volume, Knuckles investigates the mysteries of his origin, and the wonders of the Floating Island, as well as trying to solve the riddle of Archimedes. Then it’s off for adventures as Knuckles encounters his own enemies of the dreaded Dark Legion and has his first encounter with Enerjak! This is a must for fans of the Sonic series as well as the tough red Echidna.

Lions, Tigers and Bears volume 3 – This fantastic all ages series is back and has a new home with Hermes Press! In this new volume, Joey wishes that Courtney’s taunting cousin Beth would be taken by the Beasties. When she is, it’s up to him, Courtney and their nocturnal companions Ares the white tiger and Minerva the leopardess to come to her rescue. They come up against the monster Grillus and a group of evil pirates led by Scurvy. They also encounter the ghost of Captain Greybeard and his skeleton crew. Also included are two short stories that give a quick peek into Joey’s night world of beasties and guardians. Lions, Tigers and Bears is a well written and beautifully illustrated series that will charm both kids and adults. Getting full stories now instead of waiting months for the next issue is an added bonus. Do not miss the return of the remarkable series!

Lori Henderson is a mother of two teenage daughters and an avid reader. She blogs about manga at her personal blog Manga Xanadu as well as contributing and editing for Manga Village. She blogs about all things fandom (mainly Doctor Who) at her other personal blog Fangirl Xanadu. She's been at it so for over 5 years now and counting!

About Good Comics For Kids

We are a group of librarians, parents, and writers--and most of us wear at least two of those hats--who started writing about kids' comics in 2008 because, well, nobody else was. We like everything from Literary Graphic Novels to blatantly commercial (but fun!) licensed properties. And we don't lump all ages together; we're smart enough to know that a three-year-old has different abilities and interests than a 13-year-old.

Our goal is to cover kids' comics (for readers from birth to age 16) with both breadth and depth, through a mix of news, reviews, interviews, and previews, and to be both accessible to casual readers and interesting enough for serious fans.